My D is pretty much down to these two schools. She is OSS from CA looking to start with Poli Sci but I am sure she will change her major a couple of times, which is fine.
She loves CU Boulder - beautiful school and she feels because of the fit she will be happy and happy people make studious people. At $50k a year, and no scholarship.
She is visiting UMass next month - and with the scholarship she received, it will be $34k a year. And she needs to be able to keep the scholarship with grades, so the differential isn’t necessarily for all 4 year,s but hopefully it will be. But I am also finding out this is a pretty big campus (vs. the # of students) and she isn’t as keen on that, but we will find out more next month. And the size of the CAMPUS seems to be a huge issue after we just visited Michigan State and that was out of the question for her.
She is bummed, and is trying to figure out a way to work to make up the cost difference. We are willing to pay $40k a year.
Most people don’t compare these two particular schools, but am giving it a shot. Is Boulder worth the price differential?
I have not visited CU Boulder, but I have visited UMass a couple of times. It is one of the schools which one of my daughters is considering. While the UMass campus is large, there are considerable portions which are not developed (Hadley farm and by the sports complex, as well as a large area just east of the Northeast Residential area). My best guess is that the developed areas, which largely comprise the academic and residential areas of the schools, amount to about half the acreage. So, the total acreage being approximately 1500 acres, I would say 750 acres is the “core” of the campus. Michigan state looks to be 5200 acres, of which 2000 acres is developed. Considerably larger than UMass.
My daughter did not find the campus to be too large. While there are bus options (as well as the buses which circulate among the 5 college consortium) my daughter felt she would be walking to class in all but the worst weather (if she decides to attend - still waiting on some acceptances).
Regarding scholarships at UMass, my daughter received one as well, which make the price of UMass very attractive. I will need to confirm when we visit again, but my research is showing that one simply needs to remain in good academic standing (gpa >= 2.0 and not suspended, etc) to maintain the scholarship, which, if this turns out to be accurate, is the most generous condition I have come across.
Good luck with your visit. It is a beautiful campus and a good school. Be sure to visit the town of Amherst to get a feel for the town - it is quite nice.
If your daughter is an avid outdoors person – to mean hiking, backpacking, skiing, etc. – then Boulder is an amazing location. This is not to say that Amerest doesn’t have an outdoors appeal. Vermont and New Hampshire are within reach, and both have hiking, skiing, etc.
If the outdoors appear of Boulder is not a major consideration however then U Mass is the better academic choice for someone thinking about political science as a career. You’ll have the option to take courses at the five colleges consortium (see; https://www.fivecolleges.edu/academics/courses/cross_registration) and Boston, with possible summer intern opportunities, is not far off.
I would explore housing costs as you weigh each campus. Boulder housing is known for being expensive. I would also explore internship/job opportunities around both campuses. There could be more opportunities in Mass.
OTOH, it’s probably cheaper to get your daughter home for the holidays/summer from Boulder than from Mass, especially if she will have a car.
Is Boulder “worth” $50K? (plus, don’t forget tuition increases… CU went for a few years raising the costs up to 10% year-over-year!) Very hard to say – I’d venture that no public university with its inherent class size/housing/bureaucracy issues is worth that much – though certainly the large numbers of Californians at Boulder paying OOS tuition seem to think so.
Thanks everyone. Just typing this out on CC is very helpful. Makes me think a bit clearer.
Thank you to @Themclos for the acres and size comparison to MSU - that is really helpful.
@fogcity She likes the outdoors, but I wouldn’t say “avid” by any stretch of the imagination. Boulder is beautiful - there is no doubt. That appeals to her tremendously, and she feels that she would just be genuinely happy there. And while UMass campus is supposed to be bland, the surrounding area is supposed to be nice. Academically, I know UMass would be better - just not sure how much better.
@katliamom A lot of people from our area go to Boulder or Univ or Oregon (where my older daughter goes) because our CA school system is horrible and the competition to get into a decent UC (4.0+) or State school is tough. We have it bad over here, and it’s hurting our kids. So we look out of state. I know people are starting to dislike Californians a lot because of this, and we feel stuck.
The sticker price on Boulder is horrendous though,and yes, housing is bad too. She (me) was hoping for a scholarship, but didn’t get it. She wants snow, thus the reason to apply to Boulder, UMass, MSU, and a couple of other schools she was deferred from. I didn’t realize the huge $$ hikes at Boulder though - certainly something to consider. But a total $64k difference for 4 years is almost too much to look away from. I know there is a lot of money at Boulder - another thing that makes me nervous for her. And while we can make it work, by no means are we well off.
I just get nervous that she will go to UMass with a bad (sad) attitude and will that hurt her academically? I guess we all have to grow up sometimes!
We will also look at internship opportunities, but that is overwhelming all of us right now.
@3mamagirls, as a former Californian who still has plenty of family in both the LA and SF areas, I understand your dilemma. I wouldn’t worry too much about the fact that there’s lots of rich kids at Boulder: it’s a big school, plenty middle class Coloradans go there, she can hang out with the regular folk. (Smile.) One way to get her excited about U Mass is to talk to her about what an exciting part of the country she can explore. Public transportation means she can go to Boston and New York relatively easily. Along with the local kids she’ll meet at U Mass, she can hit the beaches at Cape Cod and ski in Vermont, if she’s so inclined. There is so much to DO on the East Coast! In Colorado you’re… well… somewhat limited, and I say that as someone who lives in central Denver. Yes, we have the mountains, and they’re great. But that’s pretty much it. In the east, she’d have great cities, beaches, mountains, and history galore. I really think your daughter would grow more as a person if she goes east. And yes, she’ll have winter. But also, oh so much more.
PS Boulder was my daughter’s safety; she went to school in Boston. There is absolutely no doubt she had far many more opportunities in her field - science research - in Boston than she would have had in Colorado.
@katliamom Frankly, I don’t know much about either state. However, I DO think Boston and getting to NYC would be fun for her. Something different. And she can do all that fun stuff with this $$ I will be saving :). But she has to be happy at the end of the day.
Admitted students day for EA kids at UMass is at the end of February. Will that turn her off too, too much?
@3mamagirls, one year’s savings at U Mass would allow your daughter to do a semester/year abroad! That prospect alone might be worth going to Mass. If I were you, I’d read up on Massachusetts and nearby states, things your daughter could see/do/explore and talk to your daughter about the ways 4 years on the east coast might make her a more worldly person – because that’s what travel and living in a different part of the country will do. (Also, Europe isn’t that far away, lol. My daughter and 2 friends once found super cheap tickets to London and went there for a long weekend!)
About Colorado Springs, suggested above: it’s mostly a commuter school. I think there are better options.
Thank you. And I didn’t realize, or at least don’t remember, that there is a guaranteed 4 year tuition rate for OSS. That is something positive! @katliamom
@katliamom The more I type on this post, the more I realize that $64k is a LOT LOT to consider. I think the east would be a great experience for her. I also think there is more than 1 school she can be happy at. Boulder was the first school after looking at about 12-ish other schools that she actually liked, so I think she thought she was sort of done. She is visiting UMass next month in the snow (if there will be any). Hopefully that will go well!
What did you tell her before she was allowed to apply to Colorado ? Sounds like she really likes Boulder and would be done if it weren’t for the financial angle.
I wish you a good visit, @3mamagirls, and good weather. There are lots of reasons to move to Massachusetts but weather is not one of them
It’s too bad that your daughter saw the Boulder campus already, because few in the country will be as beautiful. And, frankly, U Mass won’t be! So when you’re there, be sure your daughter hears about opportunities she’ll have beyond the campus. Ask about the five campus consortium someone mentioned up-thread. Ask about opportunities to intern for U Mass students. About events in Boston, group trips to NYC, etc. About their study abroad options. Everything and anything that will give her a broader perspective.
Frankly, the only reason we visited Boulder is that I thought she should find a safety school that she actually liked. If she didn’t like her safety and she didn’t get in anywhere else, then she was out of luck. So we visited Boulder. And she loved it. She got deferred from two other schools, took one off her list after she applied, we are waiting for 2 more, and then UMass kind of came in as a surprise and almost an after-thought. So it sort of back-fired on us.
I was hoping for some sort of scholarship from CU - they do I believe $6250 per year for 4 years for the top 25% of OSS. It would have been a stretch, but she had good ACT scores, so we went for it. And we probably would have paid the $50k if we HAD to - we would have figured something out - but then she got this scholarship and UMass is already cheaper, so it was a game changer. Or at least created some more thinking - and stress.
I will be doing a lot of research for UMass as she has sort of shut down at the moment, and then hopefully the tour goes well. She is the one who picked it in the first place - I knew nothing about the school.
I’m am sure you are hearing nothing new here, but backing off for a couple of weeks and not discussing anything college related can work wonders. Then you have to pick your moments. Easier said than done, I know. Good luck.
“and stress” If the money is not there, it’s not there. Are there still any cheaper instate schools or privates in play that you’re waiting on? Cheaper than either Boulder or U Mass?
